Most Influential Guitarist's of the 20th Century....

JimCampilongoJimCampilongo
edited March 2011 in General
Some friends and I discussed this topic via email about two years back until it drove us all crazy... Here's our list, never completed... and we couldn't trim it down to 100 (I think it's very close).
The key premise is "influential" which might keep Ace Frehley on the list and maybe Tommy Emmanuel off. Remember, this a 20th Century list....
Segovia
Robert Johnson
Muddy Waters
Eddie Lang
Django Reinhardt
Merle Travis
Chet Atkins
Jerry Reed
Lenny Breau
Don Rich
James Burton
Grady Martin
Eldon Shamblin
Roy Nichols
Roy Buchanan
Danny Gatton
Hank Garland
Jimmy Bryant
Albert Lee
Brent Mason
Freddie Green
Charlie Christian
Luther Perkins
Richard Thompson
Les Paul
Billy Butler
John Lee Hooker
T-Bone Walker
Jimmy Reed
Lonnie Mack
Albert King
Freddie King
BB King
Steve Cropper
Jimmy Nolan
Ike Turner
Cornell Dupree
Eddie Hazel
Curtis Mayfield
Hubert Sumlin
Scotty Moore
Cliff Gallup
Chuck Berry
Elmore James
Link Wray
Nokie Edwards
Tommy Tedesco
Barney Kessel
Johhny Smith
George Van Eps
Howard Roberts
Wes Montgomery
George Benson
Jim Hall
Ted Greene
Pat Martino
John McLaughlin
Julian Bream
Pat Metheny
Paco de Lucia
Allan Holdsworth
John Fahey
Leo Kottke
Joni Mitchell
Micheal Hedges
Tony Iommi
Yngvie Malmsteen
Carlos Santana
Jimi Hendrix
David Gilmour
Pete Townsend
Duanne Allman
Keith Richards
Adrian Belew
Mark Knopfler
George Harrison
John Lennon
Jeff Beck
Peter Green
Eric Clapton
Ernest Ranglin
Dick Dale
Jimmy Page
Antonio Carlos Jobim
Robert Fripp
Marc Ribot
Ry Cooder
Randy Rhoads
Bob Marley
Joe Pass
Neil Young
Angus Young
Jerry Garcia
Ritchie Blackmore
Tuck Andress
Leo Nocentelli
Al Dimeola
Johnny Ramone
The Edge
Andy Summers
Eddie Van Halen
Stevie Ray Vaughn
Bill Frisell
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Comments

  • AlexAlex
    woha! i can see how a topic like this can drive somebody mad... :) i'd add nels cline to the list... but that's just me...
  • JimCampilongoJimCampilongo
    I would put Nels in my top 25, but this is before 2000 and world wide and yes... this can drive you crazy!
  • AlexAlex
    right... i keep forgetting this is the 21st century. damn it! :)
  • bluuzbluuz
    I would add:
    Lonnie Johnson
    Big Bill Broonzy
    Kenny Burrell
    Grant Green
    Bill Jennings
    Johnny Guitar Watson
    Guitar Slim
    Duane Eddy
    Sabicas (flamenco player) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sabicas
    João Gilberto
    Johnny Winter
    and if we add some strings:
    Bob Dunn
    Bud Isaacs
    Leon McAuliffe
    Jerry Byrd
    Don Helms
    Speedy West
    Buddy Emmons

  • JimCampilongoJimCampilongo
    edited March 2011
    All good players, some were repeats in the original post... Anyway, who do you alleviate from the original list? I mean it's fun to come up with great players and I love steel guitar, but there is supposedly a 100 limit. So if you add Guitar Slim, who do you eliminate and why? That's the somewhat mind-boggling challenge that drove us away from it compiling a top 100 list...although ours was far superior to Rolling Stone magazine!


  • stevefrostevefro
    edited May 2011
    ?
  • JimCampilongoJimCampilongo
    Steve - As much as I love Leon, I think Lennon was more influential...but I don't want to go crazy again!
    Good to see your post Steve.
  • AlexAlex
    edited March 2011
    it's super hard to eliminate someone from the list and replace him with someone else. Actualy i think its IMPOSSIBLE...i do believe though that Tom Verlaine deserves one spot in the (ever expanding) top#100. So i guess i would take Bob Marley off the list. Dont take this wrong, i have the utmost respect for his music. But i dont think he was as INFLUENTIAL to guitar playing as he was as an artist in general, and as a personality of course.
  • stevefrostevefro
    edited May 2011
    ?
  • FrenchTwangFrenchTwang
    ouch!! I can't see Franck Zappa on the list.
    ok...i know the rules
  • BrianSSFBrianSSF
    John Cipollina, West Coast Sound. I don't know who you drop, but he's gotta be in there!
  • timferristimferris
    This list hurts my head! If we're just talking about who is most influential, I think Lou Reed needs to be on the list. I didn't see his name. So, correct me if I'm wrong. As far as taking somebody off? I dunno. Maybe Tuck Andress? I mean, Tuck Andress is so good that it's ridiculous. All due respect to him! But, has he influenced more guitar players than Lou Reed when he played with the velvets?
  • johnanayajohnanaya
    Wow...no Steve Vai, huge for guitar practice and spiritual discipline on guitar since the 80's and his mentor Frank Zappa, the master of strange arrange and odd time sig, (I have sooooo many friend guitarists who went to Berklee and love this guy). One of my favorites, who I believe robbed the "Sebastopol tuning" from the Hawaiians. Leo Kottke. I love seeing Eddie Hazel and Jerry Reed on this! But, we are talking about JC!
  • FrenchTwangFrenchTwang
    maybe one more important guy on the top of the list between Eddie Lang and Django Reinhardt, i think about Roy Smeck.
    In their time so many other musicians like Lonnie Johnson, Frank Zappa, Ray Gomez was very influential too...You're right It's really difficult to eliminate someone of the list and it's too late i'm crazy now:)
  • AngryroosterAngryrooster
    I love these lists, and I think this list is far, far superior to the Rolling Stone list. I would say maybe looking at this list, It might be best to call this the most 'Innovative' rather than 'Influential". Not to step on anybodies toes, though. The point of these lists is to encourage debate, right? All nitpicking aside, great list.
  • FrenchTwangFrenchTwang
    Hello Angryrooster
    i'm agree with you,innovative is the word and i love these lists too:)
  • kgharperkgharper
    One man's innovator is another mans's scourge. A few of the fellows on the list I haven't heard. But if somebody gots to go.......it's Robert Fripp n I'm adding Joe Maphis. Fripp may be an innovator but he makes me wish that he never innovated. I seen pictures of Joe's guitar for years before I think I ever heard him play........When I heard him............I liked it. Dont know if it was him that started the "whole bunch of players on one guitar".....but it's good.......n he can play really fast n hillbillyish.
  • MzDeVilleMzDeVille
    Greetings Campy:

    Brilliant that you named Joni Mitchell -- the only chick on the list and a true musical pioneer. For that, I'll add you to My List of Honorary Women. (Among others, it includes John Lennon for writing "Woman Is the Nigger of the World" which didn't get much airplay.) We're gonna have a regular wing-ding on this forum! Thanks for getting it together. Now I don't have to sign up for facebook!

    Mz DeVille, San Francisco

    p.s. - Howdy kgharper!
  • kgharperkgharper
    edited March 2011
    Hola Mz DeVille........how's things on the hill?
  • JimCampilongoJimCampilongo
    edited March 2011
    PS -Hi Mz Deville!
  • TelecasterTelecaster
    Tal Farlow is missing on the list. I think he should be added.
  • vmoneyvmoney
    if we're talking influential, then I think you gotta have Billy Gibbons... But who to bump to make room for him?

    And I'm with KGHarper on trading Fripp for Maphis!

  • JMHJMH
    Fripp has earned his place in that list, IMHO. You can hear his influence in the music of modern bands like Tool and Porcupine Tree. Another thing to bear in mind that he was (and still is!) a key figure in the creation of looping through No Pussyfooting. Looping has steadily increased in popularity through the advent of affordable loopers and many musicians incorporate them in their works nowadays, but Fripp demonstrated the viability of it to a larger audience.

    Fripp has also demonstrated how the guitar can take a more textural role in music with his Soundscapes albums, and some of them are quite astonishing. All in all, I see no reason why he would not be on the list.
  • kgharperkgharper
    Yeah Billy Gibbons and Dusty Hill.........They sound real good and the way they innovated twirling there instruments on there belt buckles in unison made me set up and take notice. Vmoney....I will suggest you bump Jerry Garcia and add Billy. If it was "Cherry Garcia" ice cream........I'd say keep it. That stuff is good, especially the chocolate coated bars. It's "shot with sugar through and through" so I dont eat much of it.........anymore.
  • bdr61bdr61
    I would disagree with bumping Garcia from the list. I like Billy Gibbons and don't know Dusty Hill. Jerry melded too many styles into a unique voice and influenced way too many people to be bumped. Plus... no one could "deliver the mail" like Jerry could.

    My humble opinion of course.
  • MzDeVilleMzDeVille
    I would add BERT JANSCH. Neil Young calls him the Jimi Hendrix of acoustic guitar -- and he is.
  • ArminSoloArminSolo
    I think you can leave Tuck Andress out for Billy Gibbons!
  • seadub8seadub8
    Fun list! I'm happy to see Cornell Dupree's name on there. I first heard him on the compilation "Atlantic Blues: Guitar". The cassette version had two songs by him, Blues Nocturne and Okie Dokie Stomp. I really dig his playing; so smooth and tasteful.

    Hi everyone, this is my first post on any forum in probably 5 years. It looked like a good chance to get in on the ground floor. I had the chance to see Jim play at Yoshi's this past December. Great, great show. I couldn't stop smiling.

  • BrianSSFBrianSSF
    I still think Cipollina should make the cut if only for his amp stack:image
  • TheRightHandManTheRightHandMan
    Hi Seadub8. Welcome to the Forum.

    -Will
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